The sheriff's office said the Warren County Drug Task Force is culminating a one-year undercover investigation that began with the trafficking of high-grade marijuana by a 17-year-old Mason High School student.

Officers served search warrants in Blue Ash, Norwood, and Hamilton, resulting in the seizure of more than 600 hydroponic marijuana plants, each valued at $5,000, deputies said.

News 5 spoke with the new residents of the Norwood home involved in the investigation. They said they quickly learned why the rent on their new home came so cheap.

"He said the house was a mess and we'd be cleaning it out. He didn't say what it was at first. We came and looked, and he explained the house was drug-busted," said new resident Carrie Hatfield.

After three weeks of cleaning, Hatfield felt it was safe for her children to move into the Norwood home. She had hauled bag after bag of paraphernalia way.

"They still left the things plugged into the walls where they had stuff plugged in to water the plants," she said.

Her daughter's room used to be filled with drugs.

The previous tenants were Cody and Stacy Lampe. Police charged the pair, along with Justin Baker and Allen Honeycutt on drug charges in Hamilton, Norwood and Blue Ash.

Police said the adults involved in the operation supplied marijuana to a high school student from Mason.

Police said a 17-year-old student was the marijuana hook-up for students at Mason and Kings high schools, even employing six other former or current students to sell drugs.

Police said the teen pulled in $20,000 a month in sales.

Hatfield said she can't believe some of it was grown in the place she now calls home.

"It's weird. The kids still don't like it. My daughter still says she's scared of it, but it's clean. There's nothing here, so for me, it's just a home for the kids," she said.

Police said charges are pending for the other five students or former students involved in the drug operation.